175 Preston

There was a party atmosphere at the Fishergate branch in Preston where customers signed a card wishing The Cumberland a happy 175th birthday and enjoyed birthday cake laid on for the occasion.

Philip Dawson, 75, of Penwortham, Preston, wished branch staff well and said: “I’ve been a Cumberland customer for more than 10 years, they know my face in here and I enjoy coming in.

“I used to be an assistant manager at a high street bank but I prefer The Cumberland for my savings – I don’t feel under pressure here.

“I also love the work in the community that they do.”

Married couple Margaret and Michael Duffy-Price, also from Penwortham, said they had known some of the Preston branch staff for over 20 years.

Margaret, 73, said: “We first got a mortgage here, then another, and now I’ve got a current account and savings.

“The products are good and the team know me, which is important to me as a woman – I usually come into the branch on my own.”

Linda Ryding, 73, from Walton-le-Dale, added: “I have savings with The Cumberland and the fact they have branches is important.

“I want to talk to someone, be able to ask questions, and if I don’t understand the answer I can ask again. You can’t do that online.”

Every year The Cumberland also supports local communities through its extensive charitable work, tackling issues from food poverty to red squirrel conservation.

It is now Cumbria’s largest financial institution with assets of £3.2bn, over 720 colleagues and 31 branches across Cumbria, Lancashire, Northumberland and south-west Scotland.

Claire Deekes, The Cumberland’s Chief Customer Officer, said: “This is a proud day for The Cumberland. While always embracing modernization we have never lost sight of our founding principles – to look after the interests of our members, the savers and borrowers, and to support our local communities. With these values at our core I am confident The Cumberland will celebrate many more milestone birthdays in the future.”

Jackie Arnold, chair of The Cumberland board, said: “We always strive to do the right thing and that’s encapsulated in our purpose to create a banking experience that is kinder to people, planet and community. I want to thank everyone who has had a role to play in creating an organisation with such a strong heritage.”

The Cumberland was first known as the Cumberland Co-operative Land and Benefit Society and one of the early aims was to encourage working people to divert some of their money into house purchases.

The second half of the 20th century saw it embrace new technology such as ATMs and bank cards, then telephone and online banking.

Unusually for a building society, The Cumberland offers mortgages, current accounts and savings products to businesses operating in a range of sectors, including hospitality, healthcare, food and drink and professional services.

The Society’s Preston branch opened in 1973 and is now the building society’s oldest branch. It underwent a four-week renovation last month with a new shop front and interior.

Cluster manager James Cookson, who oversees the Preston branch, said: “We are committed to having a branch presence here so we were pleased to be able to show that by updating the branch.

“We know our customers, we typically know people’s families and even what they’re doing for their summer holidays. It’s a place where they can feel welcome and comfortable.”

Celebrations also took place yesterday at The Cumberland’s High Street Dumfries branch attended by Provost Maureen Johnstone, and at the Carlisle flagship store on English Street where Mayor Chris Southward attended.